WASHINGTON -- Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) won wide praise for the conviction he showed during his 13-hour filibuster. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid joined that appreciation Thursday morning, noting how impressive it was that Paul not only held forth, but held it in.
"I've been involved in a few filibusters, as Rand Paul did yesterday. And what I've learned from my experiences with talking filibusters is this: To succeed you need strong convictions, but also a strong bladder. It's obvious -- Sen. Paul has both."
Reid went on to explain why dramatic actions like Paul's -- who was demanding an answer from the White House on whether it would ever use a drone to kill an American in the United States -- were a good thing.
He argued that it allowed Americans to hear the debate over important issues. And Reid contrasted that with another filibuster on Wednesday -- a silent one in which the GOP blocked the nomination of Caitlin Halligan for U.S. circuit judge in the District of Columbia.
"This can be a Senate where ideas are debated in full public view and obstruction happens in full public view as well, or it can be a Senate were a couple of senators obstruct from behind closed doors without ever coming to the Senate floor," Reid said.
Some Republicans did express their objections to Halligan. Ironically, they cited her arguments against United States counterterrorism policies with which Paul agrees.
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